A Survey of Selection Methodologies Adopted by Industry for the Selection of New Technology/Machine Tools

Summary

The selection and introduction of new technology/machine tools poses many problems for the engineer or manager; not least of which is establishing the type of investment that is appropriate to the company needs. Another major problem facing the engineer is justifying the investment in terms of how it will contribute to the future company profits. In the past, accountants have proposed a number of alternative models for financially appraising investment options but the task of selecting and justifying new technological investments must ultimately lie with the engineer who through training and experience will be aware of the many developments over the past decades along with the likely future trends in manufacturing.

As part of recent PhD research into developing a methodology for the selection and introduction of new technology/machine tools, two surveys were undertaken to establish

• the extent to which research work and academic literature has approached the subject

• what methodologies and selection criteria are adopted by manufacturing industry.

In this paper, the results of these surveys are discussed and major short-comings in the techniques adopted by industry are highlighted.